Photo Courtesy of inmates
There was shock at Luzira Maximum Prison yesterday evening when a 37-year-old female murder convict killed a 70-year-old inmate using a hoe. Jowani Bainomugisha who is serving a 20-year jail term for murdering her husband developed a quarrel with an old woman, Zainab Agutti, who was also serving a murder sentence.
SP Estera Otoo, who is in charge of the female prison wing told Kitintale OC ASP Moses Tiwamwa, that at 4 pm Bainomugisha was digging around their compound. She developed a misunderstanding with Agutti and hit her on the head with the hoe.
“Bainomugisha hit Agutti with a hoe on the head and she died instantly. The suspect remains in Luzira prison pending more action while the body was conveyed to the Mortuary,” sources have said.
ASP Tiwamwa and scene of crime officers and the Jinja road division CID commander visited the scene and recorded statements from the nearby inmates. By press time, police and prison officers were yet to establish what statement could have irked Bainomugisha to the extent of killing Agutti.
However, Daily Press has established that this is the second time Bainomugisha has killed a fellow inmate. In 2020, Bainomugisha killed Betty Nyesigire inside Masindi prison. Prison warders counted inmates and realized that one was missing. They found Nyesigire’s body in a pool of blood inside Bainomugisha’s room.
She was transferred to Luzira Maximum Prison for better management. Prison leadership later established that Bainomugisha had a mental problem. However, the Wednesday evening murder of Agutti raises more questions about why an inmate with mental illness was allowed to access a murder weapon like a hoe.